A Different Type of World
by Lady Kayanne
Summary: A new take on FFX. AU, with a new character. AurXOC Read more to find out!
1. Chapter 1

**FFX AU**

_**Chapter One**_

_3:00 a.m._

The clock's green face glared at the young woman, broadcasting the ungodly hour. Again, she found herself unable to sleep. This had been going on for years, ever since the blasted fiends had appeared. She buried her face in the pillow and screamed before gracefully rolling out of bed. Her lean body was clad in only boxers and a sports bra, and still covered in sweat, both from the hot night and her nightmares. Her auburn tresses dangled to her waist, tangled in knots in several places and curling in the rest. Dark green eyes flecked with gold blinked rapidly as her long, creamy fingers flicked the lights on. She surveyed her room, searching for her clothes. The only way she'd ever get back to sleep would be to wander the town for a while and calm her mind. She spotted her skirt, black, floor-length, and slit to her thigh on each side to allow her maximum movement, draped over the back of her vanity chair. She slipped out of the boxers and pulled it on, making sure it was buttoned tightly. She yanked a fresh black tank top out of her dresser and threw it on, slipping off her sports bra in the process. Sitting at her vanity, she dragged a brush through her hair painfully, quickly braiding it when she was done. She opened her closet to reveal a wide assortment of weapons. She slipped on her black boots and slid a dagger into the hidden sheath in each of them before grabbing two braces of throwing knives, one to strap on each thigh. She grabbed a wide belt and buckled it on, grabbing the two wakizashi that belonged to it.

She stood, examined herself in the mirror, and nodded in satisfaction. Opening her bedroom door, she strode silently through the hallways of her small house. Her only companion was the shaggy black dog that detached itself silently from its bed.

"Good boy, Fenrir. We're going out." She gently patted the massive creature's head and opened the front door. She locked it, and then Felicia Stardust blended in with the shadows of the night.

The two walked down the streets in total silence, listening for any signs that they were not alone. Fenrir's eyes darted about, searching the large expanses of shadows, pressing tightly to his mistress. She curled her fingers into the soft fur around his neck and closed her eyes, trusting him to guide her for a few moments while she calmed her mind. She reveled in the quiet stillness, a rare thing for her. She expanded her other senses, becoming one with the nature around her. The wind gently tousled the stray curls at the nape of her neck and dried the sweat on her brow. She felt the night's natural creatures go about their business, and felt them freeze in fear as they sensed the fiend wandering their way. She slipped her fingers out of Fenrir's fur, and drew her wakizashis as the mastiff slunk off into the shadows. It was their typical attack. She would charge in while Fenrir waited for his opening. It worked well for most ground fiends, with the exception of the Chimera Brains. _Damn snakes. Always watching the thing's back…_ Felicia rounded the corner and stopped dead. The very snake eyes she had just been thinking about glared at her, hissing evilly. The Chimera Brain turned slowly, bull head roaring and charging as soon as she came into its sight. She quickly recovered from her shock and dove to the side, rolling. She wasn't quite swift enough, and the snake scored a hit on her shoulder. Almost immediately, she whipped one wakizashi up and nearly took the thing's head off before she even came out of the roll and into a defensive crouch. The creature roared in pain at the death of one of its heads, and quickly cast Meggido Flame at her. She dove to the side again as Fenrir threw himself at the Chimera Brain. With his furious assault, he tore the eagle's head to shreds before the creature pulled him off and threw him savagely, the brave mastiff flying thirty feet to hit a tree and fall, whimpering in pain. Felicia screamed in rage and launched her own attack, blades whirling so fast the Chimera had no chance of blocking all the hits. Out of the corner of her eye, she saw a flash of red and a massive masamune drop onto the bull's head just as she tore the lion's head to pieces. As the fiend dropped to the ground, writhing as death set in, she twisted around to face the newcomer, blades still held defensively before her. His red coat flapped in the slight breeze, revealing a black muscle tank and black pants. He wore sunglasses low on his face, despite the fact that there was no sun, and a scar trailed down the side of his face.

"Who are you? I know everyone in this town, and I've not seen you before." Her voice rose crystal clear into the night, despite the cry of anger she had loosed earlier. She watched him warily as he slid his massive sword onto his back and held his hands out in front of him in a gesture of peace.

"I am a traveler. I hunt fiends, and cut them down. My journey has led me here, to help. My name….is Auron." He bowed slightly, and she slipped her wakizashis back in their sheaths.

"My name is Felicia, Auron. I thank you greatly for your help." She returned the bow, and was almost immediately gone from his field of vision, darting over to her faithful mastiff. "Oh Fenrir…..my little love…Hush, I'm here. We'll get you fixed up." She ran her hands over his fur, using her healing senses to see what was needed. He had two broken legs, several broken ribs, and internal bleeding. She sighed as he tried to nuzzle her hand. She sensed Auron come up behind her, and heard his deep voice.

"Is there any way I can help?"

"I can fix up most of his injuries, but I'd rather he not walk home, and I will be much drained." She sensed his nod of agreement.

"I will carry him for you."

"Don't touch me until the light has faded." She warned him. She closed her eyes and set her hands gently on Fenrir. Almost instantly, a brilliant purple light encased the woman and dog. Auron stumbled back in amazement as amethyst wings unfurled themselves from her back and folded around the two of them. The scene before him froze for several moments, entrancing him as she began to sing a soft song in a language he had never before heard. Slowly, the light began to fade and the great wings folded themselves into her back once more, disappearing totally. She slumped over Fenrir, who began to wiggle impatiently, obviously nearly healed. Making certain the light was gone totally, he gently touched her shoulder. "I'm all right, Auron. Will you please carry him now?"

"Yes. What was that….?" He asked, watching her as she shakily stood. He pulled the mastiff onto his shoulders, barely noticing the weight.

"I'll tell you later. I'd rather get him home. Now." She began to walk off, and he followed.


	2. Chapter 2

**FFX AU**

_**Chapter Two**_

Back at Felicia's house, Auron set Fenrir in his bed, and turned to face her.

"Are you sure you're all right? I've never seen anything like that…"

"I know you haven't. Most people haven't. Sit, please." She motioned to the couch as she disappeared into the kitchen, re-emerging moments later with two glasses of iced tea. She gave one to him as she sat in an oversized armchair, sighing softly in delight. "As you may have noticed, I am not exactly as I appear. My father was, quite literally, an angel. He fell in love with my mother and left heaven for her. However, his genetics transferred to me, even though he had given up his status. It has given me many advantages, one of which being the ability to heal almost any injury. It's also granted me faster speed and reflexes than a normal person usually has." She sipped her tea as he assimilated the information. "Everyone in town knows about it. I'm sort of the impromptu doctor. People come to me when the injuries are more serious. Usually, the injuries are very serious in this town. We're so isolated, surrounded by the forest like this that the fiends tend to have fun here. There's only one main road leading out, and it's how our supplies get to us. Unfortunately, it's usually overrun by fiends. On the days that we are expecting supplies, I have to erect a barrier around the road itself, until the trucks can get through, and then when they leave. It's very draining. It also affects my healing abilities for a few days, which is why taking care of Fenrir drained me so quickly. The supply trucks came in yesterday."

"So….you are half angel?"

"Actually, the abilities I have are nearly that of a full angel. My twin brother didn't receive any of the angelic genes. They all came to me."

"Twin?"

"Yes. Adrian died two years ago, shortly after the fiends appeared. A Behemoth caught him by surprise while he was hunting. I….couldn't get there in time." Agony appeared in her eyes for a moment, but she quickly hid it away and changed the subject. "Since you're new here, you can stay with me if you like. I have an extra room, and Adrian's clothes should fit you until can get some new ones."

Auron looked down at himself, realizing that he was rather tattered. He set the glass on the table as she stood and led him down the hall to a room painted blue and white.

"This was his. It has a full bathroom attached. Everything in here is yours now." She gestured to the bed and dresser that was full of clothes. "My room is across the hall. If you need anything, just knock. Since you'll be here for a while, I'm guessing, I suggest you come to work with me in the morning. We're always looking for capable hands. "

"All right. Thank you for allowing me the use of your home." He bowed slightly again. "I shall see you in the morning."

"Yes. Good night Auron." She walked across the hall way and into her room, shutting the door quietly. He watched, then closed his own door and walked into the bathroom. He stripped off his clothes, revealing a tan, muscled chest covered in scars and small scratches. He pitched the shirt into the garbage can, following it with his torn pants. He turned the shower on hot, wanting to scald away the pain of another day of fighting. He used the shampoo and soap already in the shower, lathering up his thick black hair and his skin thoroughly before rinsing it all away. He shut the shower off and toweled dry quickly. Rifling through the drawers, he found a pair of red sleep pants and pulled them on before crawling into the queen size bed and drifting off to a much needed sleep.

In her lavender room, Felicia stripped off her own bloody clothes, tossing them into the laundry bin. She turned her shower on warm, letting the hot water soothe pain filled muscles. She hissed softly as the water stung the snake bite, and washed her waist-length hair slowly, savoring the few moments of relaxation the shower afforded her. After she washed her body, she reluctantly shut off the water and dried off, wrapping a towel around her thick hair. She pulled on her boxers and sports bra again, and put away her weapons after cleaning them. Pulling the towel out of her hair, she brushed and braided it, turned out the light, and slipped into her large bed. Felicia gazed up at the skylight that held the likenesses of her father, mother, and brother in the glass, and allowed a single tear to drip down her face. _I'm so sorry I couldn't be there in time…for any of you…forgive me…_ With those thoughts on her mind, she slid into a restless sleep.

Felicia woke at 8, chest heaving as she came out of her nightly horrors. Gasping slightly, she pulled herself out of bed and put on another black tank top and denim shorts. Sliding sneakers onto her feet, she grabbed her wakizashis and strapped two long knives to her back. After re-braiding her hair, she made her way to the kitchen, patting Fenrir on the head as he happily yapped a good morning.

Auron was pulled from his sleep by the tantalizing aroma of bacon and eggs. He pulled a black muscle tank and cargo pants from the dresser and strapped his massive sword to his back. After he made the bed, he pulled on his black boots and followed the scent of food to the kitchen, where he saw Felicia putting two plates of food on the table.

"Good morning, Auron. Did you sleep well?" She asked, smiling faintly.

"Good morning, Felicia. I slept better than I have in months. Thank you for breakfast." He inclined his head and sat after she did, his mouth watering. "I haven't had food this good in a long time." He said after the first few bites.

"I'm glad you enjoy it. You'll need the energy today."

"Where is it you work? I forgot to ask you last night."

"Oh! How silly of me. I work at the town's only daycare. So many families have been torn apart that we are quite full. It is part daycare, part school, and part orphanage. I work the day shift usually, but I've been sleeping so little I've considered working the night shift as well."

"That would not be wise. Even a little sleep is better than none." He responded sagely. "But that's quite admirable anyways. I've always been fond of children. I also have great reserves of patience."

She laughed softly, a lovely chiming laugh that made the room seem brighter for a moment. "That's good. You'll need it. It's summer time, which means no classes, which means they all have unlimited pools of energy." She glanced up at the clock, then picked up her plate and headed into the kitchen. He followed her example, rinsing the dish and placing it in the dishwasher. "Time to go." She whistled softly to Fenrir, who stood and stretched, displaying no sign that he had been severely injured the night before. Together, the three left the small blue house.

The town was not large, Auron noted. There were no large shopping centers, only a few small stored lining some of the streets. The people looked unconcerned at first glance, but then he noticed many carried weapons, and scars, and hard looks in their eyes. Felicia noticed his glance and murmured softly. "We've all learned the price of being unprepared. If you think this is bad, wait until you see the school." She turned down a side street lined with massive trees. In the gaps of the trees, he could see a fence of chain link and barbed wire, and see flashes of running children. He heard their laughter, and smiled himself. Felicia walked up to the front of a monstrous brownstone building and opened the door, waiting for Auron and Fenrir to enter. Inside, he noticed rooms set up like classrooms, and several flights of stairs.

"The stairs lead to the dormitories. We try to keep only four children to a room, using bunk beds. It gets hard sometimes, but a lot of the children actually get adopted into some of the families around here. I've been thinking about doing it myself." He nodded, awestruck by the sheer pain this town must have gone though, and followed her outside to a small group of teachers who were watching the children carefully. "Hi guys!" She waved, smiling. "I brought a new teacher." The two women and the man turned and smiled as well. The blonde smiled and bounced over, bright orange tank top and green shorts making her seem almost like one of the children.

"Hi! I'm Rikku." She shook his hand enthusiastically, daggers bouncing at her hips.

"I'm Lulu." The woman in a long black dress with black hair long enough to rival Felicia's said, practically gliding over to him to shake his hand. She indicated the man with flaming orange hair. "This is my husband, Wakka." He smiled and lifted a hand in greeting, the other holding a spiked ball under his arm carefully.

"When did you get here, man?"

"Last night. I found Felicia fighting, helped her out, and she offered to let me stay." Lulu glared at Felicia.

"I thought you had stopped going out at night."

"I tried, Lu. Last night was a really bad night though." She sighed, and looked over at her mastiff. "I'm grateful he showed up though. I could have lost Fenrir if I'd had to fight that thing much longer." The dog was whimpering, his tail wagging as he watched the children running. "Oh go on, you big goof." She smiled as he tore off, barking happily. The children screamed in delight, and several of the four-year-olds ran over, clinging to her legs.

"Goo' morning Miss Felicia!!!" They cried. Auron noticed how easily they avoided her weapons, and then saw that the older children all had small weapons of their own. Wakka moved next to him as Felicia was dragged off, laughing.

"Terrible thing, ya man? Me, Rikku, Felicia, and Tidus, you'll meet 'im when we head in, hafta teach them to use those things. They kids. They shouldn't hafta worry 'bout fightin."

"No, they shouldn't." He murmured, now seeing why Felicia had told him to wait to see the school. A loud clanging rent the air and he jumped, reaching for the hilt of his masamune. He stopped when he heard the children groan and begin to walk inside. Wakka grinned at his jumpiness, and shouted over the din.

"Everyone one in the main room, clear?" The kids trudged inside, the teachers bringing up the rear, glancing around cautiously. Felicia and another teacher he hadn't seen before, a hulking blue Ronso, walked the playground, weapons bared. When they were done, they walked down to the basement with everyone else. Two other teachers greeted them, seating the children by age. Yuna, her short brown hair sporting colorful beads, took the youngest to the front, her flowing blue skirt and white top swirling as she tapped a staff that proclaimed her a summoner on the ground. Her husband Tidus herded the oldest kids to the back, his spiky blond hair waving as he tried to get them to cooperate. The other teachers spread out, sitting with their classes. Felicia walked to the front, holding one hand in the air until the children all quieted down.


End file.
